Biker Killed by Mountain Lion



"Arne" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<_Tt5c.6410$rQ.3791@lakeread04>...

> not true.. a dictator is simply a one person government.
> that does not exclude fairness.

Have you never heard of the axiom that power corrupts and
absolute power corrupts absolutely?

> What we have now could be much better than it is. It is
> human nature that has ruined it.... even fair application
> of the laws we have now to hold those jackasses
> accountable for their actions would be nice. Most times,
> when they get caught, they get a slap on the wrist....
> where we would wind up in jail.

It is far better to have someone stealing your money than to
have someone stealing your life. A lot of big time crooks
actually do end up spending some time in jail. I am sure
that just getting charged is a major trauma for them.

> Anyway, this discussion is getting boring, so I'm done.

Alas, more than one disgruntled poster has said that to me.
Actually, a discussion with me is never over until I
determine that it is over. This subject thread may or may
not continue without you, but it will surely cease when I
stop posting to it. This is not hubris, it is just one of
the facts of life here on ARBR.

Ed Dolan - Minnesota

PS. I have never appreciated your top posting. I wonder, do
you do everything else in your life backward?
 
[email protected] (GeoB) wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> > However, the solution you propose (people throwing up
> > their own housing) will not work in a society like ours.
> > We have way too many people now and we are far removed
> > from any and all primitive conditions of either nature
> > or of our society itself that would permit it.
>
> Yes, of course. But please note that I *didn't* propose
> a solution. One of the hats I wear at work is that of an
> analyst (administrator and programmer also). We analysts
> demand the right to discuss a problem from all angles
> and perspectives without being understood to be
> 'proposing' a solution. It is a complex world, one must
> be willing to dig.

I agree with you completely. I too like to speculate about
possible alternative ways of doing things without
necessarily proposing any "solutions". We intellectuals like
to think about things. It is almost a game with us. ;)

Ed Dolan - Minnesota
 
Zippy the Pinhead <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> On 14 Mar 2004 21:57:06 -0800, [email protected] (Edward
> Dolan) wrote:
>
> >The rich already pay most of the taxes in this country,
> >even with the recent reduction in their taxes by the
> >Republican congress. Kerry can only threaten to raise
> >taxes on the rich. If he even mentions raising middle
> >class taxes he will go down to massive defeat like
> >Mondale did. This should tell you that most Americans
> >think they are paying more than enough taxes
>
> al quaeda (may their carcasses be buried with the
> excrement of pigs) just installed a socialist government
> in Spain and they will do the same in America in November.

Only if Kerry wins. God, I can't believe how he is running
to the UN and foreign governments for coverage. The fact is
that Europe is decadent. They will appease anyone if only
they can be left alone to pursue the good life. They are
beneath contempt. Only America stands in the way of
universal chaos.

God bless our great President Bush! Apparently Someone does
look down on this world and take mercy on us. The European
socialist liberal leftist wacko nuts - may their carcasses
be buried with the excrement of pigs! Well said Skippy!

Ed Dolan - Minnesota
 
On Wed, 17 Mar 2004 07:12:43 -0600, Zippy the Pinhead
<[email protected]> wrote:

>The bad thing is that kerry's apparently made some back-
>channel arrangements with foreign powers, probably
>including terrorist sponsors (c.f. his remarks about
>foreign leaders secretly supporting him).

Well, since his own logs don't support that these meetings
took place and he evidently can't even get one leader that
wants to go on record, this appears to be vapor air
meetings. He needs a handler and soon - one that keeps him
on point and able to not contradict himself in the same
paragraph, or he won't be close in the election.

Not happy with either and think I'll give Nader a vote, more
to support the message that the two party system is
essentially unresponsive than that I really support Nader.
The height of arrogance is that Democrats think that Nader
owes them stepping aside. When is the last time the
Democrats did anything for Nader to be owed anything?

Curtis L. Russell Odenton, MD (USA) Just someone on
two wheels...
 
Curtis L. Russell <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> On Wed, 17 Mar 2004 07:12:43 -0600, Zippy the Pinhead
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >The bad thing is that kerry's apparently made some back-
> >channel arrangements with foreign powers, probably
> >including terrorist sponsors (c.f. his remarks about
> >foreign leaders secretly supporting him).
>
> Well, since his own logs don't support that these meetings
> took place and he evidently can't even get one leader that
> wants to go on record, this appears to be vapor air
> meetings. He needs a handler and soon - one that keeps him
> on point and able to not contradict himself in the same
> paragraph, or he won't be close in the election.
>
> Not happy with either and think I'll give Nader a vote,
> more to support the message that the two party system is
> essentially unresponsive than that I really support Nader.
> The height of arrogance is that Democrats think that Nader
> owes them stepping aside. When is the last time the
> Democrats did anything for Nader to be owed anything?

Rush Limbaugh and most other conservative commentators have
every confidence that Bush is going to win handsomely once
Kerry self destructs which he is bound to do. However, the
math is troubling. This country is not essentially
conservative despite some gains in recent years. Clinton
proved that liberals can easily win if they are just half
way smart about it. If for some reason Kerry does not self
destruct, it could actually turn out to be a close
election. If others like Curtis decide to vote for Nader it
will be an even closer and more interesting election. Nader
has gotten a bit too liberal for me although I did like him
in years past.

Ed Dolan - Minnesota
 
On 17 Mar 2004 13:37:12 -0800, [email protected] (Edward Dolan) wrote:

>If others like Curtis decide to vote for Nader it will be
>an even closer and more interesting election. Nader has
>gotten a bit too liberal for me although I did like him in
>years past.

Depends on the state. In Maryland, the electoral college
votes will be for Kerry. Its only the states up for grabs
that it makes a difference. That ain't Maryland. OTOH, in
those states a vote for a third party will be a noticeable
increment - there simply won't be many.

The bigger problem with Nader is that he isn't running as a
particular party. So it will be wasted in the since that it
isn't making it easier to run in the next Presidential race.
Still, since the vote will be wasted in a sense anyway,
voting for other than the two major parties is more
satisfying and that's what I'm going to do (if he gets on
the ballot).

Curtis L. Russell Odenton, MD (USA) Just someone on
two wheels...
 
I can't recall who it was that said it would be better to
just pick the first 1,000 names in the phone book and
install them as rulers rather than be led by the Harvard
faculty. Whoever it was, he was wiser than he seemed.

--
--Scott
"Arne" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:tHh5c.5635$rQ.4515@lakeread04...
> I would like to be ruled by either a benevolent dictator with a grip on
> life, or a conglomeration of people who actually work for a living and
have
> a bit of a struggle to make ends meet. The first would probably not pass
out
> the pork and get rid of some of the stupid things that occur (ie, suing a
> company that sells food because a person can't walk away from their plate)
> and the second would have a grip on how money should be spent.
>
> An example is our own town. It is one of the top 5 towns in my state for
per
> capita income. And when they build schools, they draw on their experiences
> of how they live. Consequently, they think our schools should reflect
their
> life style. And our taxes have risen accordingly. And people of normal
means
> are leaving town to avoid our high taxes....
>
> Then we have our folks in washington who have their own retirement plan.
> They have their own health care system. What did they do after passing
OSHA
> and Equal Opportunity Emloyment Act? They put provisions in that excluded
> themselves from having to follow the laws they just passed.... In short,
> they continually put themselves above us.
>
> The main reason the gov't first existed was to maintain an army/navy for
the
> defense of our country. There was no income tax...... and it has grown
from
> there to where we are now. We think they should take care of everybody and
> everything.
>
> Arne
>
> =====================
> "Edward Dolan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > "Arne" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:<mE25c.3672$rQ.2995@lakeread04>...
> >
> > > We are in a society that is ruled by lawyers. I do not know what % of
> the
> > > general population is lawyers, but I don't think it is 59%......
> >
> > I grant you your point, but what I am saying is that is not such a bad
> > thing. Who would you rather be ruled by? Corporate executives. Labor
> > union leaders. Priests. Intellectuals. Wealthy landowners. I think
> > not.
> >
> > The advent of the small town lawyer in America who works in all areas
> > of the law is one of our finest creations. It may very well be that
> > this lawyer class has more to do with our freedoms than any other
> > class of citizens. They value the law above all else and see to its
> > enforcement. I give you old Abe Lincoln as a fine example of what I am
> > talking about. If it weren't for lawyers, we may very well have lost
> > our democracy long ago along with most of our freedoms.
> >
> > But lawyers do not so much rule us as represent us. But the beauty of
> > it is that lawyers know how to check one another without coming to
> > blows or committing murder. This creates balance and it is very
> > difficult for any one person or clique to ever dominate anything. It
> > mostly creates a lot of grid lock, but that is not such a bad thing
> > either.
> >
> > Ed Dolan - Minnesota
 
Curtis L. Russell <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> On 17 Mar 2004 13:37:12 -0800, [email protected] (Edward
> Dolan) wrote:
>
> >If others like Curtis decide to vote for Nader it will be
> >an even closer and more interesting election. Nader has
> >gotten a bit too liberal for me although I did like him
> >in years past.
>
> Depends on the state. In Maryland, the electoral college
> votes will be for Kerry. Its only the states up for grabs
> that it makes a difference. That ain't Maryland. OTOH, in
> those states a vote for a third party will be a noticeable
> increment - there simply won't be many.

I think there are more states up for grabs though than the
liberal media has let on. In the last election Minnesota,
Wisconsin and Iowa just barely went for Gore. That could
easily change this time around. It is not just states like
Ohio, Pennsylvania and Missouri that are up for grabs. The
two coasts (the NE and the West Coast) seem to be Democratic
country these days and that is unlikely to change but Bush
Country could actually enlarge in the rest of the country.

If Kerry self destructs like I think he will (a la Howard
Dean) this will all be moot and Bush could win in a
landslide. Do you know of anyone who really likes Kerry?

Ed Dolan - Minnesota
 
"Freewheeling" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> I can't recall who it was that said it would be better to
> just pick the first 1,000 names in the phone book and
> install them as rulers rather than be led by the Harvard
> faculty. Whoever it was, he was wiser than he seemed.

All through my youth I spent many countless hours watching
William F. Buckley on his TV program "The Firing Line"
interviewing guests from all over the world. He was an arch
conservative of course. I was more impressionable then than
I am now so I do remember he said the above about who he
would want to be governed by many times. Whether it was
original with him or not I do not know. But it has always
stuck in my mind and has seemed wise to me too. The same
principle operates when it comes to juries.

However, the problem is that the general population does not
take that much of an interest in politics. They never have
and they never will. And so it falls to those who do take an
interest in politics to take over the reigns of government.

The liberals have always been much better at this than
conservatives because liberals believe in the power of
government to do good and so take an interest in it.
Conservatives mainly want to be left alone to make money
and want the least amount of government that will allow
them to do this.

But whether liberal or conservative, the lawyer class
dominates in both parties. This is not such a bad thing
actually as lawyers do like to observe the laws by and
large. Iran with its ayatollahs shows us that the priestly
class may actually be the worse possible class for governing
other than tyrannical dictators (usually military types).

But all governing classes are elites. The rest of us are too
busy just trying to make ends meet. The best most of us can
do is just look in on the process every four years or so and
vote for whoever the Dems and the Repubs present to us.

Ed Dolan - Minnesota
 
Arne:

"What we have now could be much better than it is. It is
human nature that has ruined it"

So how could it be better than it is?

Anyway, since you're bored here a citation to an article
written by David Brooks on "bourgeoisophobia."

http://www.weeklystandard.com/content/public/articles/000/0-
00/001/102gwtnf.a sp

It's a generalization, but a very powerful one.

--
--Scott
"Arne" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:_Tt5c.6410$rQ.3791@lakeread04...
> not true.. a dictator is simply a one person government. that does not
> exclude fairness.
>
> What we have now could be much better than it is. It is human nature that
> has ruined it.... even fair application of the laws we have now to hold
> those jackasses accountable for their actions would be nice. Most times,
> when they get caught, they get a slap on the wrist.... where we would wind
> up in jail.
>
> Anyway, this discussion is getting boring, so I'm done.
>
> Arne
>
> =====================
> "Edward Dolan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> >
> > There is no such thing as a benevolent dictator. It is an oxymoron.
> >
> > The second group you mention would be ideal and harkens back to the
> > Jeffersonian ideal of democracy, the sturdy yeoman of the countryside.
> > Alas, those days are long gone.
> >
> > What we presently have is not as bad as you imagine it to be. It could
> > be infinitely worse.
 
Scott, after writing out a long reply to you personally, no
email address.... even at the bottom....

Arne

=====================
"Freewheeling" <[email protected]
 
On 18 Mar 2004 06:07:42 -0800, [email protected] (Edward Dolan) wrote:

> Do you know of anyone who really likes Kerry?

Wrong choice.

Can you come up with enough people who don't hate Bush, by
the time the "smear machine" gets done?

To hear the Dems tell it, Bush is evil incarnate, and
responsible for every bad thing that ever happened since the
Great Depression.

And there are a plethora of sheep who will drink Kerry's
purple Kool-Aid.

Sure, Kerry will increase Federal spending on social
programs, but he'll pay for it by raising taxes only on the
elite; the very wealthiest 98% of Americans.

It's for the children. And the ozone.

Did you know Kerry went to Vietnam?
 
"Freewheeling" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> Arne:
>
> "What we have now could be much better than it is. It is
> human nature that has ruined it"
>
> So how could it be better than it is?
>
> Anyway, since you're bored here a citation to an article
> written by David Brooks on "bourgeoisophobia."
>
> http://www.weeklystandard.com/content/public/articles/000-
> /000/001/102gwtnf.a sp
>
> It's a generalization, but a very powerful one.

Your link above does not get me to the citation. Which is
too bad as I am always delighted to read about the
bourgeoisie, whether for good or
ill. But the Weekly Standard is a fine publication and
I shall continue to search for the article by
David Brooks.

Regards,

Ed Dolan - Minnesota
 
Zippy the Pinhead <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> On 18 Mar 2004 06:07:42 -0800, [email protected] (Edward
> Dolan) wrote:
>
> > Do you know of anyone who really likes Kerry?
>
> Wrong choice.
>
> Can you come up with enough people who don't hate Bush, by
> the time the "smear machine" gets done?
>
> To hear the Dems tell it, Bush is evil incarnate, and
> responsible for every bad thing that ever happened since
> the Great Depression.
>
> And there are a plethora of sheep who will drink Kerry's
> purple Kool-Aid.
>
> Sure, Kerry will increase Federal spending on social
> programs, but he'll pay for it by raising taxes only on
> the elite; the very wealthiest 98% of Americans.
>
> It's for the children. And the ozone.
>
> Did you know Kerry went to Vietnam?

Yes, the hatred of Bush is a phenomenon which defies
rational explanation. The ignorance and downright stupidity
of the American electorate is always something that has to
be taken into consideration. Nevertheless, Bush has enough
money to spend on TV ads to persuade even the stupidest
American that he should be retained for the duration of the
War on Terrorism. I predict that Kerry will self destruct
sooner or later. The fact is that no one really likes him.
He is an elitist of the worst sort. Kerry is already making
one misstep after another.

It is now March. The election is not until November. That is
more than enough time for all Americans to get their heads
screwed on straight. I am thinking Kerry will go down to
defeat a la McGovern. The fact is that the Dems are not fit
to take power in this time of strife and warfare. The
American people will clearly see this in due course.

The main thing working against Bush is not Kerry but the
g.d. liberal media. If any one tells me that the major media
are not liberal I think I will go stark raving mad from the
frustration of it all. Hell, if it weren't for Fox News, I
would already be as mad as a hatter.

Ed Dolan - Minnesota
 
"Arne" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<Ymj6c.12543$rQ.3861@lakeread04>...

> Scott, after writing out a long reply to you personally,
> no email address.... even at the bottom....
>
> Arne

You ought to be posting to the newsgroup so I and others
can get in on
it. No need to be exclusive here. We are all known to one
another by now and we have no secrets from one another.
This is a mature newsgroup and you do not need to be
concerned about being flamed unless you initiate it.

Regards,

Ed Dolan - Minnesota
 
On 18 Mar 2004 23:17:36 -0800, [email protected] (Edward Dolan) wrote:

>You ought to be posting to the newsgroup so I and others
>can get in on
>it. No need to be exclusive here. We are all known to one
> another by now and we have no secrets from one another.
> This is a mature newsgroup and you do not need to be
> concerned about being flamed unless you initiate it.

Simply not true in every case. Some things are, by
netiquette, taken off-line. If I'm discussing someone in
general terms and someone wants to know more personal items
about someone we know in common, then it isn't for the
newsgroup, it should be off-line. And sometimes a direct
flame may be appropriate, but only off-line.

There are way too many cases to cover even a small portion
of them, and people are going off-line all the time, whether
you are pleased with it or not.

Curtis L. Russell Odenton, MD (USA) Just someone on
two wheels...
 
"Edward Dolan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> "Freewheeling" <[email protected]> wrote
> in message
news:<[email protected]>...
>
> > Arne:
> >
> > "What we have now could be much better than it is. It is
> > human nature
that
> > has ruined it"
> >
> > So how could it be better than it is?
> >
> > Anyway, since you're bored here a citation to an article
> > written by
David
> > Brooks on "bourgeoisophobia."
> >
> >
http://www.weeklystandard.com/content/public/articles/000/0-
00/001/102gwtnf.a
> > sp
> >
> > It's a generalization, but a very powerful one.
>
> Your link above does not get me to the citation. Which is
> too bad as I am always delighted to read about the
> bourgeoisie, whether for good or
> ill. But the Weekly Standard is a fine publication and I
> shall continue to search for the article by David
> Brooks.
>
> Regards,
>
> Ed Dolan - Minnesota

Ed, Put the letters "sp" at the end of the url and it will
get there.....they got cut off in his post.... jd
 
Scott and I are long-distance recumbent-riding friends who
have lost touch. The note was more personal than to do with
this off-topic discussion. Otherwise, I agree with what you
said..... this time it doesn't happen to fit.

Arne

=====================
"Edward Dolan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> You ought to be posting to the newsgroup so I and others
> can get in on
> it.
 
"Edward Dolan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Zippy the Pinhead <[email protected]> wrote
> in message
news:<[email protected]>...
>
> > On 18 Mar 2004 06:07:42 -0800, [email protected] (Edward
> > Dolan) wrote:
> >
> > > Do you know of anyone who really likes Kerry?
> >
> > Wrong choice.
> >
> > Can you come up with enough people who don't hate Bush,
> > by the time the "smear machine" gets done?
> >
> > To hear the Dems tell it, Bush is evil incarnate, and
> > responsible for every bad thing that ever happened since
> > the Great Depression.
> >
> > And there are a plethora of sheep who will drink Kerry's
> > purple Kool-Aid.
> >
> > Sure, Kerry will increase Federal spending on social
> > programs, but he'll pay for it by raising taxes only on
> > the elite; the very wealthiest 98% of Americans.
> >
> > It's for the children. And the ozone.
> >
> > Did you know Kerry went to Vietnam?
>
> Yes, the hatred of Bush is a phenomenon which defies
> rational explanation. The ignorance and downright
> stupidity of the American electorate is always something
> that has to be taken into consideration. Nevertheless,
> Bush has enough money to spend on TV ads to persuade even
> the stupidest American that he should be retained for the
> duration of the War on Terrorism. I predict that Kerry
> will self destruct sooner or later. The fact is that no
> one really likes him. He is an elitist of the worst sort.
> Kerry is already making one misstep after another.
>
> It is now March. The election is not until November.
> That is more than enough time for all Americans to get
> their heads screwed on straight. I am thinking Kerry
> will go down to defeat a la McGovern. The fact is that
> the Dems are not fit to take power in this time of
> strife and warfare. The American people will clearly see
> this in due course.
>
> The main thing working against Bush is not Kerry but the
> g.d. liberal media. If any one tells me that the major
> media are not liberal I think I will go stark raving mad
> from the frustration of it all. Hell, if it weren't for
> Fox News, I would already be as mad as a hatter.
>
> Ed Dolan - Minnesota

Ed,

Are you sure Fox got there in time?

Jack